Yesterday those on the frontline continued to tell of the hardship caused by paying “extortionate” fees of up to £3.50 an hour.

At the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield, Craig Lyons, 27, of Rotherham, South Yorks, said: “The prices are bad enough but what really bothers me is the size of the spaces – they are tiny.

“It seems wrong that they pack cars into these unsuitable small spaces and then charge them expensive prices to park.”

A spokesman for Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: “Our rates for car parking at both the Royal Hallamshire and Northern General Hospitals are comparable to or lower than many other NHS city based hospitals.”

Many cancer patients cannot take public transport to hospital as they have impaired immunity.

Natalie Attrill of the Daily Express with some of the thousands of responses to our crusade [PAUL STEWART]

I’ve heard of heartbreaking cases where cancer patients have had to run out to top up the parking meter in the middle of their treatment

Macmillan Cancer Support campaigns manager Laura Keely

Campaigns manager Laura Keely said she was delighted that the Daily Express continues to highlight the issue and urged hospital Trusts in England to provide free or, at the very least, discounted parking for cancer patients.

She said: “For those who are regularly attending hospital for life-saving treatment this is simply not affordable.

"I’ve heard of heartbreaking cases where cancer patients have had to run out to top up the parking meter in the middle of their treatment – this is terrible.”

According to a phone poll by the Daily Express, some 97 per cent of readers believe the charges should be abolished altogether in England, as they have been in Scotland and Wales.

A Freedom of Information request sent to 186 NHS trusts (153 replied) found 74 made more than £500,000 from car parking in the last financial year. Forty-six of these took more than £1million.

The Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, made just under £4million while the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust made £3,670,907.

The Trusts claim they need the money to operate the car parks successfully.

To join our crusade, Hospital Parking Scandal – End It Now!, fill in the coupon or sign up online at express.co.uk/hospitalparking